Building a Bridge
by Little Minamino
Summary: Two years have changed a lot for Hikari who finds herself back at the academy due to her leg injury. Now, facing the prospect of a new team, Hikari will make one last effort to reconcile with Itachi. But will it all be for naught? Mutual-Onesided ItaHika
1. Blue Print

Building a Bridge

Chapter One: Blue Prints

Hikari resisted the urge to rub her leg as she weaved through the crowded village streets. Every now and again she checked to make sure Tenten was still obediently close but most of her attention was focused on the pulsing ache in her thigh. Practicals had been especially grueling at the academy that day and she really wasn't looking forward to her weekly therapy session so soon after straining her leg. The only consolation she mustered up from the pain was that at least she wasn't limping. That meant she was finally getting better right?

She started just a bit as Tenten tugged on her skirt. She'd almost forgotten the girl was there. Looking down Hikari studied the younger girl with that ever present sense of guilt. She'd grown up a lot in the two years since her brother's death and her thick brown hair had grown so long it was too heavy for the six year old to wear down.

Hikari's eyes drifted to Tenten's hair at that thought. Yotaro had always been the one that fixed it before and she'd always looked adorable with her hair pulled up in twin buns. Now it was Kairi that always fixed the little girl's hair, and Hikari had to admit that her would-be sister-in-law always did a much better job then she had managed earlier.

There had been a small scuffle in the school yard that Tenten had gotten into with a young Hyuuga boy. She hadn't seen the entire fight so she didn't know the cause, but she'd managed to catch the tail end of it just when the boy had grabbed at one of Tenten's buns and pulled so hard the elastic broke. After a swift scolding and a swat on the backside, Hikari had sent the Hyuuga boy, Neji, home before she'd tugged Tenten over to the Academy steps to fix her hair and dry her teary eyes.

The bun had ended up lopsided and more then a little loose but Tenten had still beamed at Hikari once she'd finished tying it off with her own hair band. Looking at it now, Hikari noted that even more strands had fallen loose and started to tangle around Tenten's ears. She would have just pulled both of the buns out and fixed them in a simple pony-tail but Tenten always insisted that her hair should be kept in buns. When Hikari had asked her once why that was the case Tenten had said she wanted her brother to recognize her when he finally came back from his mission.

Another tug reminded Hikari that Tenten had wanted her attention and she fought back a flash of embarrassment at being caught daydreaming. Again. Somehow it always seemed like her head was in the clouds these days. This time the tugging was so insistent that Hikari stopped completely, disregarding the flow of the crowd and squatted down to Tenten's level.

"What's wrong Tenten-chan?" Hikari asked as she pushed a stray wad of hair from Tenten's eyes. "Are you okay?"

"Hikari-nee," Tenten said. Her voice was small and her lip was quivering. Hikari instantly knew this would not be a good conversation. "Nii-chan isn't coming home, is he?"

A hard lump settled in Hikari's throat and she did her best to swallow it down before she responded. Her voice cracked a little and she cleared her throat before trying again.

"What makes you say that Ten-chan?"

"We had a lesson in class today," Tenten said, almost whispering. "It was a history lesson about the treaty with the Mist Village. Two years ago, when you and Itachi-nii-san and Nii-chan were at the Chuunin exams…a lot of people died…Neji said my brother died too." Tenten sniffled hard and rubbed at her already red eyes. "He c-called him worthless cause he lost to a tr-traitor." It was a look of utter misery that was etched on Tenten's face as she looked up at Hikari. "Was my Nii-chan really worthless?"

"NO!" Hikari said, pulling Tenten so abruptly into her arms that her loose bun fell out completely. "He wasn't worthless! Not at all! In fact, your brother is a hero."

"A h-hero?" Tenten said and Hikari nodded.

"He saved my life. Itachi's too. More then once even." She laughed once but it wasn't in humor. "The two of us never could do anything without him. He was like…our glue or something."

"You said he had a special mission," Tenten said. Her voice wasn't accusing but Hikari still flinched in guilt.

"I know. I'm sorry. I really, really am Tenten. I never should have told you that, you've always deserved to know the truth, I just…I didn't want to tell you because…then I would have to admit that Yotaro really—." Hikari took a deep breath. "That he's not coming back."

Tenten was quiet for a moment as she kept her face pressed tight against Hikari's shoulder. She shifted once, just a bit, so that when she spoke next it wouldn't be muffled.

"It Nii-chan really a hero, Hikari-nee?"

Hikari hm'd before she gently pushed Tenten back to look her in the eyes. "How hungry are you?"

Tenten tilted her head a bit in confusion but in the end she just shrugged.

"I wanna show you something," Hikari said as she stood. "I think it will help you understand just how great your brother is."

The memorial stone was quite a bit out of the way and with every step that Hikari took, she felt the pain in her leg burn just a little more. Tenten trailed after her like a curious puppy as they left the bustling areas of the village and made their way to the more quiet refuge of nature. The memorial stone was located in a clearing near the training grounds and Hikari had always found that to be rather poetic.

It stood there as both a warning and an inspiration to all who wish to use these training grounds. It warned that the life of a shinobi was unpredictable but it also immortalized those shinobi that were exemplary in their lives. It was the type of memorial every shinobi dreamed of, no matter what their status was.

"Do you know what this is Tenten?" Hikari said as she rested her hand on the face of the all too familiar stone. Tenten looked almost insulted.

"Of course I do. Shinobi who die have their names put there."

"Not just any shinobi," Hikari corrected. "Only heroes can have their names inscribed on this stone. Ninjas who have done great things to protect the village are immortalized here."

"So?" Tenten said. "Why's this so special to me? I don't know any heroes."

"You think so?" Hikari said; a knowing smile on her lips. "Well, what about this name? You think you recognize him?"

After throwing her a half annoyed half confused look, Tenten inched closer to look at the name Hikari was pointing at. There was only one set of characters but her eyes widened as she recognized them. She knew this name better then she could read her own.

"N-nii-chan?" Tenten said. "But why? He never acted like a hero…did he?"

"Sit down Tenten-chan," Hikari said as she sat down with her back to the stone. "I have a story for you." Tenten sat down at once. "You probably don't remember this because it was a long time ago, but about two and a half years ago my team got our first c-rank mission. What we didn't know was that the scroll we were given was actually a message scroll with s-class information that had to be delivered to the Daimyo right away."

Tenten's eyes were wide as she listened. "So what happened? Did you make it there?"

"Actually, we were attacked one night and everyone got separated…"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Take that you Cloud fiends!" Tenten yelled as she raced through Kairi's front door. As an after thought she managed to kick off her sandals before she jumped into the main level, still kicking and punching her invisible enemy.

"Goodness!" Kairi laughed as she stepped into the hall, dodging Tenten who called back a quick sorry as she raced to her room. "What was that all about?"

Hikari smiled but she knew it wasn't all happy. "I told Tenten about Yotaro today."

Kairi paused. "Oh?"

"She'd already guessed the truth and you were right, she was upset about it. I should have told her sooner."

"She didn't look upset," Kairi said. There was no accusation in her voice, only curiosity and motherly concern. This time Hikari's smile was genuine.

"Yeah," Hikari said, slipping out of her own sandals. "I took her to the memorial stone and showed her Yotaro's name. When she asked why he was there I told her about our mission with the Cloud scroll. She's been acting it out since we left the clearing."

"That's funny," Kairi said, a sly smile on her lips. "I don't remember the story being quite so…animated."

Hikari blushed but did her best to shrug it off. "I may have…embellished a few parts. But everything was essentially the same."

"I'm proud of you Hikari. You did the right thing today."

"Thanks Kairi. So, what's for dinner? You need any help?"

"Oh, no, but thank you," Kairi said. "I'm almost done, but if you would feed Akira for me it would be a big help. He's just started to fuss."

"Sure. What's on the menu?"

"Stringed carrots and rice porridge."

Hikari pulled a disgusted face. "Stringed carrots? No wonder the kid always throws his lunch at you. That's disgusting."

"This is supper, Hikari, not lunch."

Hikari shrugged. "Same difference. Where is the little monster anyway?"

"In the playpen. He has so much energy I can barely keep up with him. Did I tell you he almost burned down the main room yesterday?"

"He did? How on Earth did he manage that?"

Kairi shrugged. "I'm not sure but I think he was using jutsus. I was a bit worried though, after all I don't want him to hurt himself, so I went to see to your aunt. Apparently this sort of thing isn't that unusual for Haruno children, though most of them aren't quite so strong. They usually grow out of it rather quickly though, which is why most of your family members are civilians, or so Akina told me."

"Now that you mention it, Ichigo did catch Sakura-chan's hair on fire when they were both little. Nobody was really thinking that it was something special though since we were all rather terrified she was going to die. My mom still says it was a miracle that she didn't get burned. You'd never have guessed it though, with the way Sakura was screaming."

Kairi nodded. "I remember that day. Kyo threw water on her as he came running into the room."

"I know, if it wasn't so scary I probably would have laughed." Hikari said and the two girls shared a chuckle before Akira started to whine in the other room. "Guess that's my cue. I'll be right back."

Hikari slipped from the kitchen and headed down the hall to the main room where Akira's playpen was kept. He was still whimpering when she reached him. His big brown eyes were puffy from tears and his lower lip was quivering as he stood up against the mesh wall and held up his left arm to be picked up. Hikari scooped him up and cuddled him into the crook of her arm; cooing softly to calm him down.

"What's with the tears, little one?" She said while brushing at his damp cheeks. "You hurt yourself?"

Akira sniffled again and Hikari noticed he was cradling his right hand. Worried now, she gently reached out to unfold the limb and he wailed.

"Akira!" Hikari's voice was flustered as she tried to shush her young cousin. "What is it? Oh, I really wish you were old enough to talk!"

"He is," Kairi said, wiping her hands on her apron as she stepped through the doorway. "He's just not ready to yet."

Akira quit crying instantly as his mother came into view. He stretched his left hand out towards her and Kairi smiled softly as she gently took him from Hikari's arms.

"What's the matter Akira?" Kairi said as she carefully pulled her son's fingers back to reveal a frayed blue ribbon. "Ah, I see. You broke Teddy's ribbon."

Hikari watched Kairi calm her son as the boy looked up at his mom, as though ashamed and ready for a scolding. It was almost scary how smart Akira was. He was only fifteen months old but he'd already mastered walking (and probably running too if Kairi was having trouble keeping up with him) knew almost all of his colors (she'd tested him once by having him point to the ones she said, it was almost scary), and followed conversations like he was hanging on to every word. In all honesty, the only thing the kid hadn't excelled at was talking, and that was only because he refused to try.

Kairi crossed over to the playpen with Akira perched on one hip so that she could reach down and pull a sapphire colored teddy bear out from under the piles of blankets, pillows, and other toys Akira had stashed it under. Hikari recognized it instantly as the bear Kyo had won at the summer festival the year she and the others had first become team four. She'd always wondered what her cousin had done with it since she'd never seen it after that. It made sense though that he'd have given it to Kairi. It had always been obvious (to everyone but Kyo and Kairi of course) that the two were made for each other.

Hikari's expression melted to a sad frown as she watched Kairi replace the deep navy ribbon with the one that had been holding back her hair. It wasn't fair that things had turned out the way that they did. It wasn't fair that Akira didn't have a father. And it was especially not fair that Kyo had never married Kairi before he died. He was planning on it too. He'd showed her the ring the night before his mission. She'd been so excited for them.

The ring was one of the only things they'd managed to recover with Kyo's body. He'd threaded it into the knot of his hatai-ate in an attempt to save it from being lost. They'd only found it when Kakashi and her father had dressed him for burial. Kakashi had given it to Kairi and, while she never wore it on her finger, Hikari knew that she kept it on a gold chain around her neck.

"Hikari?" Kairi said, concern on her face as she straitened up. "Are you alright?"

"I'm sorry."

If possible Kairi's concern seemed to deepen. "For what?"

"For everything," Hikari said. Her voice was growing harsh around the lump that had formed in her throat. She did her best to swallow it back. "If I hadn't been so…so pathetic back then; if I'd just worked harder to be a better ninja. I could have helped Yotaro or at least not gotten in Itachi's way. Then Yotaro would still be alive and Kyo would never have taken that mission…He wouldn't have died and Akira would have a dad. You'd be a Haruno like you're supposed to be."

Kairi looked thoughtful for a moment before she shifted Akira on her hip and handed him the blue bear. Akira clung to it at once, his chubby fingers playing with the satin ribbon around its neck.

"The night Kyo came home after your chuunin exam was the night Akira was conceived." Hikari looked up in confusion but Kairi just continued on. "I don't know how I knew, but I did. It was like the baby and I had made an instant connection. I hid that connection from Kyo because I knew that if I didn't he would have felt it too."

Hikari's eyes were wide and her mouth had dropped open just a bit in shock. "But…_why_? If he'd known about Akira then Kyo would never have left. He would have _stayed_. For _both_ of you! So _why_ didn't you let him **know**?"

"Because he never would have been happy."

"I—." Hikari paused. "What do you mean?"

"In your team, who do you think was the closest to Kyo?" Kairi said. "Who did he seem to…relate to the best?"

"I don't know." Hikari said, shrugging. "He treated us all pretty much the same."

"Did he?"

"…I think so."

"You know, whenever Kyo and I met up, for whatever reason, he always talked about how great his team was. He told me how you and Itachi were always fighting but that he knew you both liked each other—." Hikari winced but Kairi ignored her. "And how Yotaro was always the mediator, even if he was the one that started your fight in the first place."

Hikari giggled. That was certainly true. As many fights as Yotaro had ended, he'd started at least half of them in the first place. Looking back, she had to wonder if he did it on purpose. Probably.

"But he always had something special to say about Yotaro. Of course he was proud of all of you but I have to think that he sort of…adopted Yotaro in a way. Not even as a little brother but more like a son. Maybe a favorite nephew. His death hit Kyo harder then anything I've ever seen. Not even Nakai's death hurt him that bad."

Hikari's eyebrows furrowed. "Nakai…?"

"Our old teammate. He died during the Kyuubi invasion. You'd only met him once or twice so it's no surprise if you don't remember."

Hikari shook her head. "I don't. Were they close?"

"The best friends I'd ever seen. Aside from Yotaro and Itachi. Those two definitely had something special. They were almost like brothers."

"Yeah," Hikari said. "They really were."

"Anyway, what I'm meaning to say is that I knew Kyo would never be happy until he did everything he could to avenge Yotaro. That's why I didn't stop him. Though I will admit that I never expected that he would get himself killed."

"Yeah, Kyo-nii always seemed too stubborn to die. Losing Yotaro and then Kyo-nii so close together, and with me and Itachi…drifting apart…" she shook her head. "It's a wonder I didn't go crazy."

"Losing people you care about is never easy but it is a part of life. That doesn't mean that we shouldn't mourn or remember our friends and loved ones, just that we can't let it rule our lives." Kairi smiled and motioned to Akira. "Kyo would never forgive me if I did less then everything I can for our son. That's one of the reasons I can keep going."

There was a knock on the door and Hikari gave Kairi a conspiring wink. "And here comes another reason."

Kairi flushed. "We're just friends. He comes to look in on us because Kyo asked him too. That's all."

"Sure," Hikari said, waving an absent good-bye. "I gotta go pick Sakura up from daycare. Good luck at dinner. Oh, tell Tenten-chan that I'll pick her up the same time as always tomorrow."

She practically skipped to the door and pulled it open, surprising Iruka who was posed to knock again.

"Good afternoon sensei," Hikari said. "Here to see Kairi-nee-chan?"

"Actually I have some things for Tenten. She left them in the classroom today. I also need to talk to her about the fight today." He eyed her sternly. "And you as well young lady. Hyuuga Hiashi was not pleased to hear about your treatment of his nephew."

Hikari scoffed. "That old man doesn't care about Neji at all. He's just upset that I didn't treat a member of his clan with 'awe' and 'reverence'. What's the big deal about them anyway? They're just people with funky eyes."

"I'll keep that in mind when you spar a 'funky eyed' Hyuuga in class tomorrow."

"Ch, Ko's got nothing on me. I'm a genin after all."

"Were," Iruka said. "You were a genin. Now you're just an academy student like all of your other classmates. If you want that title again then you'll have to earn it back."

"Yeah, yeah," Hikari said, absently brushing at her bare forehead. "I've heard it all before."

"Maybe if you studied a little you'd have the chance to move up in the classes. After all, your physical marks are still just average."

"I had my leg shattered Iruka-sensei," Hikari said bitterly. "You can't expect me to just jump back in the game like it never happened."

"That excuse will only last for so long," Iruka chided. "You can't keep going through the academy scared to try anything just because you're afraid to fail."

"You're right," Hikari said, sarcasm dripping from her words. "Why should I be afraid of failure? It's not like I caused my teammate's _death_, shattered the _bones_ in my leg, drove off _another_ teammate, failed to protect my _sensei_, or got _booted_ back to being a no-name ninja recruit because my physical condition dropped below genin level and I wasn't smart enough to be of use any _other_ way."

Iruka tried to interject but Hikari beat him to it.

"Oh wait! That _**is**_ what happened, isn't it?"

"You can get passed all of that, Hikari." Iruka said. "In fact, most of it isn't even true!"

"Which part? Yotaro's death? My leg? How about driving Itachi off or not stopping Kyo from leaving? Nice try Iruka-sensei but you're not really cut out for this whole 'comforting people' thing."

"Hikari—."

"I'll see you in class tomorrow. Kairi-nee's probably waiting for you. After all, Akira still needs his nasty lunch stuff."

Iruka sighed as Hikari weaved passed him and she tried to ignore it when Kairi came up next to him, Akira sucking on a teething ring in her arms.

"She keeps so much holed up," Iruka said. "It isn't healthy."

"She's been through a lot these past few years." Kairi said as Hikari moved out of hearing range. "Don't worry though. She's strong and this is just a small hurdle in the way."

Hikari snorted as she rounded the corner and entered the market streets.

"To bad I suck at jumping hurdles Nee-chan." She said to herself as she worked her way through the crowd.

End Chapter One

Kaliea: I know I said the sequel would be called 'Shades of Gray' and it will be. I just haven't worked out the plot quite as well as I would have liked yet so this is kind of a…filler arc. It's also an easy way for me to get out the exposition I need for the next story. That way I can focus on that plot rather then explaining how we got there from the end of Dark and Light. Anywho, I hope you all enjoy this story though it definitely won't be as cutesy as the last one. Hikari's got some serious issues to work out. Not to mention more on the way. Don't forget to review!


	2. Ground Breaking

**Building a Bridge**

* * *

Chapter Two: Ground Breaking

Dinner seemed to drag on and on before Hikari was finally dismissed to her room. It was with a sigh of relief that she dropped backwards onto her futon, thankful to finally be off her throbbing leg. The hanging calendar on her wall caught her eye and she groaned at the red circled date that reminded her of her weekly therapy session at the hospital. If there was anything she hated more then being a ninja reject, it would have to be her weekly therapy. Everyone at the hospital treated her kindly to her face but behind her back was an entirely different story.

While Itachi had never been particularly social, any warmness that had made its way to his heart during his time on team four had been abruptly snuffed out following the disaster that was their last chuunin exam. It was something that everyone in the village noticed and since Itachi had blamed Hikari for Yotaro's death his vast fan club members (young and old) decided to take up tormenting her as their personal crusade. It was her childhood all over again, except it wasn't harmful to her body as much as her spirit.

It was just her luck that the nurse in charge of Hikari's sessions was a rabid Itachi fan. Hardly two minutes could go by without her mentioning the 'young dark-haired heart-throb'. It was enough to make Hikari sick. Not to mention jealous. It hurt for her to know that the best way she could learn about what her former teammate was up to was through the grapevine. Especially since most of that grapevine news was told to her for the specific purpose of upsetting her. Fangirls really were vicious.

The burning in Hikari's thigh lessened as she grew more comfortable in her position and she mentally debated the repercussions of blowing off her appointment completely. She'd already stretched and strained the limb enough on the P.F.T field earlier and, if Iruka's 'threat' was to be taken seriously, she would have to face off with Hyuuga Ko in the practice ring the next day.

As long as she stretched properly before hand nothing serious would happen and with the exercise she'd gotten in that day she knew her nurse, Mariko, would just lay down more rules before sending her home. Though not before she handed out the latest Itachi related gossip. That girl was one of the most vindictive of Itachi's Fangirls Hikari had ever had the displeasure of meeting.

Still, her father would have a cow if he learned she didn't go. He had been so upset at her injury that he'd almost made her quite completely as a shinobi. As it was she managed to talk him out of it but he'd insisted she return to the academy to retrain. She'd tried to have the Hokage talk him out of it but Sandaime-sama had agreed with him. That being that she'd had to retire her hatai-ate until she managed to graduate with another team. With as much as he'd done already, there was no telling how her father would react if she started skipping her therapy.

With that thought foremost on her mind, Hikari heaved a sigh and slowly sat up. She only had about twenty minutes before her six-thirty appointment and she needed to change out of her academy clothes and probably ice down her leg before she went since it had swollen up a little. No need to give Mariko any more reasons to gloat over her uselessness as a ninja.

"Hikari?" Her father's voice floated through the door. "Don't you have an appointment today?"

"I'm getting ready now dad. I'll be out in a few minutes."

"Hurry up then. You don't want to have to run there, it could make your leg worse."

"I'll keep that in mind daddy."

With another sigh, Hikari was on her feet and searching out a set of civilian clothes.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Mariko tutted as she looked over Hikari's swollen leg.

"Honestly Haruno-san, it's a wonder you were ever a ninja at all with how slowly you heal. And you've honestly had more relapses then any other patient I've worked with." Mariko looked up at her in suspicion. "You do want to get better, don't you?"

Hikari half wondered if the woman was crazy. "What are you talking about? Of course I do!"

"I have to wonder," Mariko said. "Maybe you're just trying to get sympathy out of Itachi-kun, though why he'd pity you is a mystery to me."

"I don't want him to pity me!" Hikari said scowling at the young nurse. "He doesn't have to pity me!"

"Well you'd better keep it that way. With the exams coming up, the last thing Itachi-kun needs is to be distracted by an ex-burden."

"Has anyone ever told you that you have a rather winning personality?"

Mariko scowled. "Has anyone ever told you that you're an annoying little brat?"

"All the time actually, I'd think someone as 'smart' as you would be able to come up with something more original."

"Just shut up and stop moving. The sooner I fix your damage the sooner you can leave."

Hikari bit back a retort as she crossed her arms with a huff. As much as it pained her to admit it, Mariko was rather skilled as a nurse despite her young age. At fourteen she was the youngest member of the hospital staff and a rather accomplished kunoichi. She had graduated the academy at ten and completed the chuunin exam at thirteen before settling down in her chosen career as a med-nin. Currently she was an intern nurse and one of the youngest in history.

For Hikari, though, Mariko's many accomplishments didn't make her any more likeable. It especially annoyed her that the older nin felt like she needed to keep her updated on Itachi's current situations. It's not like she wasn't able to find out what he was doing on her own. All she had to do was ask Arai during class sometime or—.

Wait. What exam?

"What did you mean by an exam?" Hikari asked suddenly. "Why would Itachi need to take a test?"

Mariko scoffed and flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Don't tell me you haven't heard?"

Hikari wisely chose to stay silent lest she said something she really shouldn't.

Mariko laughed. "Honestly, and you want to be a ninja?"

Rather then pointing out that she already _was_ a ninja, Hikari decided to prod Mariko for the answer to her question.

"Well? What exam?"

"The chuunin exams of course," Mariko said. "They're being held in Konoha this time around and Itachi-kun entered with a temporary team."

Hikari's jaw dropped in shock. "He what!"

"What are you doing!" Mariko said as Hikari scrambled off the examination table and grabbed her sandals from the floor. "You're exam isn't done yet!"

"Sorry but I'll have to reschedule!" Hikari said. "See you next week!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Itachi hid a sigh as he finally exited the Hokage tower. He didn't remember there being quite so much paperwork the last time he'd taken the exam, but he imagined that was probably because Kyo did most of it for them. As it was, he'd been stuck in one of the conference rooms with seven other teams for almost four hours before he finally signed his last line. All he wanted to do now was go home and collapse on his futon. Maybe he could read to Sasuke tonight if the boy was still up.

"Itachi!"

His heart leapt at the sound of Hikari's voice and he had to force his face to remain impassive as he paused in his step. He didn't want her to know he was happy to see her but he'd rather not be cruel if he could avoid it. He'd always hated seeing Hikari cry. It just wasn't natural.

"Thank goodness I found you," Hikari said, rather out of breath. "I didn't think I'd see you before tomorrow."

"What do you want Haruno?" Itachi said, not turning to face her. "I have preparations to make."

"So you really are competing then?" Hikari sounded pained and it took all of his will power not to turn and make sure she was alright.

"I am."

"Why?" Hikari said, and Itachi finally allowed himself to face her. "After everything that happened last time, why do it again so soon? You should wait until you're stronger…until we're stronger! Then I can help you—."

"Like you helped last time?" Itachi cut in. "Sorry Haruno, but I've had enough of your 'help' to last me a dozen lifetimes."

Hikari gritted her teeth in anger as she stared strait into Itachi's expressionless black eyes. He held her gaze with an air of contempt though on the inside he was practically cringing at the intensity. She could be rather intimidating when she wasn't flitting around like an airhead.

"You're such a moron!" Hikari said abruptly, startling Itachi just a bit. "How can you just waltz into another exam, unprepared, with some shot-gun team that you don't know? You think they can watch your back better then me? Let me tell you something you jerk, no one knows what your back looks like better then I do! No one!"

Itachi scoffed. "And that's supposed to make me feel better? To know that I have a cowardly ex-teammate that spends enough time hiding behind me that she memorized what my back looks like? I'd rather have someone who can stand beside me and help me face the enemies ahead, but you already killed him didn't you?"

"I didn't kill him you jerk!" Hikari said, her breathing ragged and shallow. "It wasn't my fault so **stop** **telling me that**! If it's anyone's fault then it's yours! You're the one that was to slow to help him!"

"Only because you were holding me back! If it wasn't for you I never would have been held up in the first place!"

"Like hell you wouldn't!" Hikari said. "Correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't that me saving your butt against Hana?"

"And then you distracted me and almost got us both blown up! Who was saving who then?"

"Then you should have let me die!" Hikari was crying now. "Why'd you have to save me if I'm so useless to you? You should have just left me behind!"

Itachi was shocked. "Hikari, I—."

"I wish you did!" Hikari said. "If I was dead there wouldn't be any pain! You know what? I'll bet you kept me alive on purpose as some twisted form of torture."

"I didn't—."

"I don't care anymore. Go ahead and get yourself killed. I never should have bothered with you in the first place! I hate you!"

He should have called after her. He should have told her it wasn't like that. He should have pulled her back and made her listen. He should have done a lot of things, but he didn't. He couldn't. Those three words echoed inside his mind like a broken record, stealing his every sense to leave him in a blank, black void.

I hate you.

It's what he'd wanted. If she hated him then he wouldn't have to worry about Kenta. If he broke all of his ties to her then his cousin would have no reason to steal her away.

But damn it if it didn't hurt.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Nii-chan, nii-chan!" Sasuke said as he bounded into the entryway where Itachi was pulling off his sandals. "You're home!"

"Hey little brother," Itachi said, his voice tired. "What are you still doing up? It's late."

"Mom said I could wait for you cause you have a test tomorrow."

"Is that right?" Itachi said, a small smile on his lips. "And was that the only reason? Or did you have something else in mind too?"

Sasuke looked a bit sheepish as he pulled a yellow book from behind his back. "Well, um…will you read me a chapter tonight nii-chan? You haven't read it in a while."

Itachi's expression softened and he reached over to gently take the book from his brother's hands. The once vibrant color was faded from age and use and the pages were wrinkled from years of turning. Even still, he couldn't help but smile at the memories this book brought up from his childhood. He could still remember how Obito-nii-san's voice sounded when he read it, over acting the action parts in order to get Itachi to laugh.

"Sure, otouto," Itachi said. "I'll read a chapter. Go get dressed and I'll be in after I've changed."

"Okay!" Sasuke said as he hurried down the hall to his room. Itachi chuckled as Sasuke stumbled around the corner and he stood, sliding the hardcover book into his thigh pocket as he did so. Sasuke always had so much energy and life about him. It reminded him a lot of how Hikari had been back when team four was together.

"Itachi." His father's voice was abrupt as usual and when Itachi turned to face Fugaku he noticed that his father's mouth was turned down into his typical frown.

"Yes otou-san?"

"Come to the council room."

"As you wish," Itachi said. "Once I've put Sasuke to bed I'll be right there."

If possible, Fugaku's frown deepened. "Now Itachi."

"Thirty minutes won't change what you need to say." Itachi said; his voice and face proclaiming his stony resolve. "I will come once Sasuke has been put to bed."

For a moment Itachi was sure his father was going to argue, but instead he merely grunted before he turned and disappeared down the long hallway. Itachi glared after his father's back. He hadn't been the same since the Kyuubi attacked five years ago. In fact, he seemed rather dark. As though he were carrying some terrible secret. As much as he hated to admit it, Itachi would be less then surprised if that were the case. The entire clan had been on a razor's edge for years. It was only a matter of time before they were cut in half.

"Nii-chan?" Sasuke said, peaking around the corner. "Aren't you ready yet?"

Itachi forced away his negative feelings and smiled down at his brother. The younger Uchiha was dressed in a set of navy blue footie pajamas with the clan symbol displayed prominently across his small back. He looked adorable.

"That didn't take you very long."

Sasuke blushed. "I wanna read the story."

"Alright then, I'm coming."

Itachi followed his bouncing brother down the hall to Sasuke's room where the boy promptly launched himself onto the futon and burrowed under the covers. Itachi stifled a laugh as he crossed the room and gasped dramatically.

"Oh dear. It seems Sasuke-kun has vanished." He said and Sasuke giggled beneath the blankets. "Oh well, I guess he won't get to hear the story after all."

"No, no, no! I'm right here nii-chan!" Sasuke said, popping out of the covers. "I got you didn't I?"

"You sure did, otouto," Itachi said. "Now move over so I can sit down."

Sasuke promptly slid over and made room for his brother on the edge of the bed. Once he was settled, Itachi pulled the yellow book from his pocket and started flipping through it.

"Now let's see, where did we leave off?"

"Naruto was trapped in a tree and the bad guy was about to get him!"

"That's right," Itachi said, finding the page. "How could I forget?"

"Does he escape nii-chan?" Sasuke said his eyes wide. Itachi laughed and ruffled his hair.

"Hold on a minute and we'll find out won't we?"

Sasuke grinned. "Yeah!"

End Chapter Two

* * *

Kaliea: So how was that? Isn't Itachi such a jerk? And yet, he's such a good big brother…(sigh) it's so sad. Anywho, don't forget to review! And until next time, ja ne!


	3. Frame Work

**Building a Bridge**

* * *

Chapter Three: Frame Work

Crying sucked.

It really, really did.

What sucked even more was that Hikari had spent half the night crying into her pillow before falling into a restless sleep. And if that wasn't enough she'd been jerked awake by her alarm clock, which she promptly destroyed, before stumbling into the bathroom to attempt to rescue her splotchy face.

Attempt being the operative word.

Unfortunately, while most of the red was gone, her cheeks and nose were still somewhat pink in places while her eyes were puffy and accented with purple bags. In short, she looked like a particularly brutal train wreck.

It was too much to hope that no one would comment on it (because she knew no one was dumb enough to not actually notice) so instead of dwelling on it she squared her shoulders and walked through the streets with her head high. After sneaking out of the house of course. If her mom saw how she looked she would be facing a day off full of tissues, girl-talk, and bad leukemia theater.

Kairi was noticeably concerned but let the issue drop with Hikari's bland: "I don't want to talk about it."

Tenten didn't seem to realize anything was different about her honorary big sister as she skipped her way to the academy; bragging about all the bragging she would give to Neji over what a hero her brother actually was. Hikari did her best to appear upbeat and interested but every time she started to feel a little better Itachi's words from the night before would replay in her mind and she would be back to feeling depressed.

Being depressed was really…depressing. How did Itachi manage to keep it up _all the time_?

Once she dropped Tenten off at her classroom, Hikari hurried down the hall to the fourth year classroom.

"You okay?" Arai said as Hikari slipped onto the bench beside her. "You look like crap."

"Thanks Arai," Hikari said sarcastically. "I love you too."

"You know what I mean," Arai said. "What's up?"

Hikari slouched in her seat and dropped her chin onto her crossed arms. "…Nothing."

Arai sighed in annoyance. "You talked to Itachi yesterday didn't you?"

"You knew?" Hikari shrieked, sitting up lightning fast. "Why didn't you tell me!"

"Sorry, Hikari," Arai said, her expression one of guilt and regret. "I wanted to but Itachi made me swear not to mention it. He said you'd try and stop him…did you?"

"Of course I did! He's being a complete moron!" Hikari fisted her hair tightly in irritation. "I can't believe he's actually going through with this! Does he _want_ to die?"

"In Itachi's defense, it wasn't entirely his decision."

"What do you mean?" Hikari said just as the classroom door slid open and Iruka stepped inside.

"I'll tell you later," Arai whispered as the students rose as one to greet their sensei with a bow.

Hikari tried her best to be patient but she couldn't help counting down the minutes till free period. She tapped her fingers restlessly against the desk top as she watched the hands of the clock slowly tick forward. Slowly. Slowly. Geez, if they went any slower they'd be moving backwards!

"Hikari!" Arai hissed, nudging her friend with her elbow.

"Huh? What?" Hikari said loudly, snapping from her daze in surprise.

"Thank you for joining us Haruno-san," Iruka said dryly. "And since you know enough about the lesson to zone out, would you mind reciting for us the forty-seventh ninja saying?"

Hikari's mouth went dry as her eyes darted around the classroom as though asking for help. Some of her classmates looked sympathetic but most of them wore varying expressions of amusement. Morino Idate looked especially pleased at her predicament. Of course that wasn't too much of a surprise. She'd never really gotten along with the other boy. He was always such a smug jerk.

"Haruno-san," Iruka said. "We're waiting."

Hikari was about to tell him she didn't know when she saw Hyuuga Ko, who was sitting just in front of her, slide a paper into her view containing the asked for saying.

"A shinobi is always attentive to information that could prove valuable on the field." Hikari read and Iruka nodded.

"Very good Hikari-san," He said and Hikari sighed in relief that they were back on a first-name basis. "However, it would be best if the next time you managed it without Ko-san's assistance."

Hikari blushed and sunk lower into her seat as her classmates all laughed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Thanks a lot for warning me back there," Hikari said as she and Arai descended the steps to the P.F.T. field. "I really appreciate you having my back and all."

"I tried to warn you—four times!" Arai said. "But when you space out, Hikari, you _really_ space out. What were you thinking about anyway?"

"That time was going too slowly."

"Too slowly for what?"

"P.F.T." Hikari said, leading Arai to a more secluded part of the field where younger academy girls usually practiced their flower arrangements. "So you could tell me what you were gonna say before class started."

"Oh right. About Itachi." Arai sighed as she sat down. She rested her back against a tree and drew up her legs as she yanked a random flower from the grass and started pulling off its petals.

Hikari quickly got comfortable too; sitting cross-legged in front of her best friend. "Well?"

"Keep in mind this is all stuff that I heard second hand from Yuuki—."

"You're cousin Yuuki?"

"Yes," Arai said, annoyed. "Don't interrupt."

"Sorry."

"Anyway, I heard it from Yuuki and she knows because she's one of Itachi's teammates in the exam along with my brother—."

"But Itachi hates Kenta—."

"I said don't interrupt!"

"Okay, okay. Geez."

Arai rolled her eyes and tossed away the bare flower stem before she leaned forward conspiratorially. "So Yuuki said that she and Kenta and Itachi were called into the council room two weeks ago and told they were gonna compete together. Yuuki was okay with it since she'd been looking for a team anyway and you know Kenta, he was a smug little jerk about the whole thing. Graduating early's really gone to his head."

"He hasn't been that bad," Hikari defended. "Every time I see him he's really modest about it."

Arai looked incredulous. "My brother? Kenta? Modest? Yeah, and I'm the daimyo's daughter."

"Nice to meet you hime-sama."

"Oh shut up," Arai said in jest. "I mean, seriously, do you want me to tell you this or not?"

"Yes! So hurry up already or P.F.T. will be over!"

"Well if you'd stop interrupting—."

"You're not saying anything important!"

"See? There you go interrupting me again."

"Arai!"

"Alright, alright, geez. Stop whining already. You're really annoy—." Arai stopped short, slapping her hand to her mouth in horror. "Awe geez, Hikari. I'm really, really sorry."

"Forget it," Hikari said shakily, brushing the slip aside even as she battled to keep herself from folding into a ball. She really, really hated that word: annoying.

Stupid freaking Itachi being a stupid freaking jerk…

"…Sorry." Arai said again.

"Just continue already."

"…Alright." Arai sighed. "Well, when Itachi tried to back out of it his father put his foot down. Yuuki said that he was pretty angry about it. Said stuff about Itachi neglecting his duty and being weak and stuff."

"So he didn't want to in the first place…" Hikari said before she dropped her forehead into her hands and groaned. "I'm such an idiot Arai. Itachi probably hates me for what I said."

"What _did_ you say?"

"…That Yotaro's death was his fault…"

"…Ouch, girl. Why'd you say something like _that_, of all things?"

"That stupid jerk started it," Hikari muttered, drawing her knees up under her chin.

"Well that's a mature way to look at things."

"Shut up, Arai."

"So I guess that means you don't want to hear the rest?"

Hikari perked up just a bit. "There's more?"

"Yeah." Arai glanced around before leaning in closer. "Apparently, Itachi confronted Kenta about the exam, saying that they needed to put their differences aside and whatever, and Kenta said he'd make sure Itachi never saw the end of it."

Hikari scoffed. "That's crap Arai. Just because he and Itachi don't get along doesn't mean he's going to kill him. Kenta's a lot of things but he's not a…a…kin killer or something."

"You don't know him like I do Hikari," Arai insisted. "He's malicious when it comes to getting what he wants and what he wants is to be the best. To him, Itachi is nothing but an obstacle that needs to be removed."

"Alright, enough," Hikari said. "I just asked about Itachi, not your warped sibling rivalry. I'll see you back in class okay?"

"Where are you going?" Arai asked as Hikari stood and brushed off the back of her skirt.

"I want to stretch out a bit before sparring starts." Hikari said. "I think Iruka-sensei is going to have me face off against Ko-kun today."

"What makes you say that?"

Hikari shrugged. "Women's intuition."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The weeks that followed had Hikari on pins and needles waiting for any information she could get about the chuunin exams. More specifically about Itachi and his team. They'd made it safely through the first and second tests, much to her relief, but no announcements had been made yet on the match-ups for the third round one-on-one combat section. Normally she wouldn't be so concerned but, despite her firm disbelief in what Arai had told her about Kenta, Hikari couldn't help but worry that he and Itachi would end up matched. There was enough bad blood between the two cousins already without adding any of their own to the mix.

Recently she'd taken to stalking around the Hokage tower, waiting for the announcement that she knew would come eventually. Although why they waited so long to announce the matches was a mystery to her. It really was a stupid tradition. Like anyone would have the chance to interfere with the combatants during the preparation month. And even if they did have a problem with the matches they'd be more likely to just kill the other contestant rather then offer assistance to their favorite.

Oh. Maybe that was why the match ups were kept a secret. It made more sense then her other theory at least.

"Hikari-chan," Sandaime said as he stepped outside of the tower. "You've been waiting out here for quite a while."

"Forgive me, Hokage-sama," Hikari said with a bow. "I hope I didn't cause a disturbance."

Sandaime smiled. "Only to my peace of mind. I was beginning to think there was something wrong. You're not having trouble at the academy are you?"

"Oh, um, no sir," Hikari said. "Not really. It's just kind of boring sometimes. Actually, I'm here to ask you about the chuunin exam. Have the matches been decided yet?"

"Ah, I see," Sandaime said, a look of mischief on his face. "You're concerned about Itachi-kun hm?"

Hikari's cheeks grew hot and she stubbornly shook her head. "Of course not! I don't care one bit about that dumb jerk. I wanted to know about Kenta-san."

Sandaime sighed, his brow wrinkling just a bit in concern before he spoke. "Itachi-kun is only doing what he believes is best."

"He's being stupid is what he's being." Hikari said harshly. "I miss Yotaro too, but he's taking it too far. He broke up our team!"

"Hikari-chan—."

"Please, Sandaime-sama," Hikari said, her voice suddenly soft. "I'd just rather not talk about it."

"As you wish." Sandaime sighed. "Well then, shall we go inside?"

"What for?"

"You did wish to know the matches for the tournament did you not?" Sandaime said. "To, ah, cheer Kenta-kun on?"

"Oh, right." Hikari said, before smiling brightly. "Then let's go!"

Hikari grabbed the Hokage's hand as she raced into the tower giggling along with his laughter as she barreled through the halls.

"Pardon us." the Hokage said again and again, but he made no effort to slow or stop Hikari until they'd reached his office, and by then she had stopped by herself.

"We're here!" Hikari announced and Sandaime chuckled.

"Indeed we are." He walked around his desk and sat down to sort through the scattered papers littering the desk top. "Now you have to promise me Hikari, that no matter what you learn today you won't interfere. The matches were chosen at random and there was no foul play. Understand?"

Hikari tensed, her stomach feeling as though it were filled with lead, but she nodded anyway.

"Good." Sandaime pulled a tournament chart out and set it on top of the other papers. With just a quick glance Hikari counted fifteen slots, meaning five teams had made it through the second exam. Forcing aside the fate the disqualified teams had come to, Hikari started scanning the roster for Itachi's name.

It was the fifth one she came across and as such Itachi was scheduled for the third round. Her heart nearly stopped when she saw the name of his opponent and she looked up at the Hokage with her mouth agape. Sandaime nodded sympathetically and Hikari tried to say something but found herself unable to. Instead she just looked back at the list, begging it to change.

It didn't. In only two days time, Uchiha Itachi would face off against Uchiha Kenta in an anything goes fight to the finish.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Itachi wasn't worried about his fight with Kenta, in more ways then one it was inevitable that they would fight eventually. Eventually just came sooner then he expected was all. He wasn't interested in the preceding fights so, rather then watching something he didn't care for, Itachi had leaned his back against the wall and crossed his arms. Closing his eyes he attempted to center his mind in preparation for his fight. After all, just because he wasn't worried about it didn't mean he would go in unprepared.

Unfortunately, rather then focusing on his upcoming match, Itachi's mind continuously wandered weeks back in time to the last conversation he'd had with Hikari. He wondered if she was still mad. He had noticed that she was still attending the academy so apparently she hadn't taken everything he said to heart, but he had to wonder if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

And he really wanted to know if she actually did hate him.

"Scared, Prodigy-san?"

Itachi remained passive though inwardly he scoffed at Kenta's question.

"I don't fear the inevitable." Itachi said.

He could practically hear the smirk in Kenta's voice.

"You should."

End Chapter Three

* * *

Kaliea: So how's that? Sorry it took so long, I've been busy. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. If so tell me what you liked and if not drop me some tips (That's code for 'please review' :) Till next time, Ja ne!


	4. Finishing Touches

**Building a Bridge**

* * *

Chapter Four: Finishing Touches

Itachi had learned long before that he had two sets of sharingan. When he first realized it, he was almost positive that he was defective in some way. It was only by chance that he happened upon the hidden room beneath the Uchiha's temple floor one day when he was almost nine, and learned the truth about his eyes. The scrolls in the room were all old and yellowed, each one sealed carefully with a wax Uchiha fan. Curiosity had overcome him and he'd broken the seals.

One of the many things he'd learned was that in order to obtain his second sharingan, the mangekyo sharingan, the attainer had to kill their best friend. That only proved what he'd thought all along. Yotaro's death was his fault. Itachi was a murderer.

At that moment he'd resolved to never use the mangekyo unless the situation was dire. In the two years he'd had those eyes he hadn't used them once outside of his battle with Makoto.

He never thought he would be forced to use them against his cousin.

It had only been six months since Kenta had activated his sharingan. From what Itachi had gleaned from the clan gossip, he had tried and failed to rescue his female teammate from several enemy cloud nins. Following her death, Kenta's eyes had awakened and he'd taken his revenge. His second teammate had fallen into a coma due to the battle and was still being held at the hospital. Whenever Kenta was asked why he never visited his comrade, his answer was that he couldn't stand to see his friend in such a state.

Itachi knew differently. Kenta hated his teammates. To him they were nothing but obstacles in his way.

Their match started out as all the others. They met at the center of the wide coliseum like ring with the mediator, Yamanaka Toushi, between them. Their eyes met across the thin gap and Kenta smirked while Itachi remained passive.

"A win is determined by knock-out, death, or surrender," Toushi said. "Any and all tactics are permitted. You may begin." Toushi retreated to the side of the ring and leaving the two cousins clear to fight.

"She trusts me you know," Kenta said and Itachi hid a flinch. "Probably more then she ever trusted you. I wouldn't be surprised if she cheers for me today."

Itachi's eyes flickered to the stands where Hikari stood. She was biting her lip, a nervous habit she'd always had, and her eyes were focused intently on the two cousins while her grip practically destroyed the rail she was holding on to. It was only the barest of movements from the corner of his eye that warned Itachi to evade and he ducked just in time for Kenta's round-house kick to miss his head.

"You're quick at running away," Kenta said and Itachi snorted.

"Do you honestly believe I would let you win?"

"What's the matter? Did I strike a nerve?"

"No." Itachi said firmly as he evaded another strike before attacking with his own. "She has nothing to do with me."

"Did you know?" Kenta dodged Itachi's outstretched Kunai and ducked below his arm to come up next to Itachi's ear. "She's the only one you call for at night. Do you want her that badly?"

Itachi gritted his teeth and struck out with his foot but Kenta had already flipped over his head to take Itachi's back.

"I'll take her," Kenta said, once again at Itachi's ear. "In three years you and I will be required to choose. She will be mine."

"You can't have her!" Itachi's eyes were red this time as he struck out and his movements were a great deal faster. "Hikari is mine!"

The kunai in Itachi's grip grazed across the front of Kenta's shirt but he had moved back to far for a real strike. Blood red met blood red as the two sharingan clashed. Time seemed to hang suspended for only a moment before the two boys disappeared; to fast for the eye to see.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hikari really wished she knew what they were saying. She'd never seen Itachi so upset before. That time in the Chuunin exam not included of course. When they both activated their sharingan it was only a moment before they disappeared from the speed of their attacks. Every now and again a flash of light could be seen where weapons must have collided but other then that there was nothing.

Anxiety built up in Hikari's chest and she began to contemplate whether or not she should use her secret jutsu. No one knew about it, not even Itachi, because it was something she'd discovered on her own by accident. She had been returning home from one of her weekly sessions when she'd been attacked in an alley. It was only a simple robber but at the time she had still been recovering, with no real way to fight him off. In her panic she'd tapped into what she now knew was her inner element.

The alleyway had gone completely black and somehow she had focused all of the light into her eyes. She'd been able to see clear as day while her attack had groped around in the darkness. She had told Kyo who had helped her train and develop her knew skills but after his death she'd decided to keep it to herself. Instead she would train on her own in the woods, every now and then using an animal to test her theories. She always let it go of course; it wouldn't help her secrecy if she had to keep bringing dead animals home for her mother to make into supper.

Glancing around first to make sure no one was watching, Hikari closed her eyes and gathered her chakra. This time, rather then taking away all light, she only took a small section that was focused around Itachi and Kenta making their surroundings only a fraction dimmer. Focusing this light in her eyes, she made it flicker about ten times a second making a strobe.

The world around her seemed to slow and for a moment she was a dizzy and a little sick but she pushed the feelings aside and searched out the darkened spots of light that were Itachi and Kenta. There. They were still fast but their movements were now slowed enough that she could see them.

As she'd known, both boys had their sharingan activated while they fought. They used mainly taijutsu but every now and then one would throw or use a weapon but it was always blocked. For a moment Hikari wondered why they weren't using any jutsus until she remembered that the sharingan was used for copying. Anything one would use would only be thrown back by the other.

It was ten minutes, a long battle by shinobi standards, before Kenta broke away from the speed battle and whipped through a series of handseals that Hikari couldn't follow even with her new vision. She was expecting a fire jutsu, something the Uchiha clan was rather infamous for using, but instead Kenta disappeared into a field of black that was quickly spreading like a strange, thick miasma. Itachi pulled back and formed seals of his own, throwing a grand fireball jutsu at the growing blackness.

Hikari wasn't the only one surprised when the darkness simply absorbed the fire, snuffing it out in an instant. The miasma had filled the entire ring to the brim, blackening everything beneath, before it stopped. A murmur of confusion and surprise ran through the crowd but Hikari ignored them as she leaned over the rail. Gathering more light into her eyes she stopped the strobe and focused on seeing through the darkness.

She wasn't able to penetrate the inky blackness even an inch. It was almost like it absorbed any light that was directed towards it.

A jolt of understanding ran down her spine and Hikari instantly gathered a sphere of light in her palm. This time she didn't even bother to look around her before she fired the light at the darkness. Her ball of light disappeared on contact and her face darkened in concern. She was right, it did absorb all light. Even with fire Itachi would have no way to see or fight. He was completely blinded by Kenta's attack. She could only hope that Kenta was equally blind.

But she doubted it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Itachi stumbled around in the abrupt darkness, completely blinded. His sharingan burned from use but he forced them to remain activated, searching uselessly in the dark. He sensed a movement from behind and struck but hit only air, making him stumble. Frustration welled up as every attempt to find Kenta turned up empty until finally he yelled out in anger.

"Stop hiding you coward!"

Kenta's laugh seemed to come from every direction, confusing Itachi even more.

"I'm not hiding at all," Kenta said. "It's not my fault you can't see."

Three quick blows pounded into Itachi's stomach in succession. Winded, Itachi dropped back and threw a kunai in the direction the strikes came from but there wasn't any sound of contact. More invisible blows rained down on him from every direction, to quick and to silent to be countered or sensed.

A blade whistled in the dark and Itachi barely managed to avoid being impaled between the eyes. Instead the edge struck a line across the side of his face, from the corner to his eye and back through his hair line. The hair-tie holding back his long hair snapped as he jerked away, severed by the point of the kunai.

Blood mingled with the loose hair, plastering it against his face, head, and neck like a thick paste. The hot liquid stung his left eye and he wiped at it viciously before returning his focus to finding Kenta. It wasn't even a minute before his head began to feel heavy and his movements sluggish. Gravity seemed to tilt and the darkness only served to make Itachi even dizzier as he stumbled forward in an attempt to regain his balance.

Poison, Itachi realized. Kenta had poisoned him.

Anger welled up inside him and Itachi fumbled at his belt. He didn't know what poison he'd been given so he couldn't cure it, but he could slow the affects by thickening his blood. He slipped a blood replenishing pill between his teeth and bit down hard. With so much more blood his movements would be sluggish while his heart worked it through his system, but it was better then falling victim to whatever Kenta had injected him with.

"You really are a stubborn one," Kenta said. "Just give in."

"To you?" It wasn't really a question but Itachi needed to by some time and Kenta had always liked to talk.

"Well, some one needs to put you in your place."

Itachi flexed his stiff fingers and reached into his kunai pouch. He only had two minutes at most before his make-shift first aid started to fail. This had to be finished by then. His fingers closed around the handle of a kunai but his grip wasn't strong enough to hold it. He bit back a curse and closed his eyes tightly against the darkness.

He hadn't ever wanted to use the mangekyo again but he didn't have a choice now. Already more attacks were raining down on his back, arms, and legs; he didn't have the luxury of hesitation. The next time Itachi opened his eyes his mangekyo sharingan broke through the darkness and the world was bathed in a dull red tint. Itachi likened it to looking through a pair of infrared glasses.

Itachi watched through his new eyes as Kenta hesitated. It wasn't much but it was enough for him to make eye contact and instigate the first attack of the mangekyo: tsukuyomi.

Once again the world went red, but this time it was different. Rather then just being red tinted, this world looked as though it were made of blood and an ominous red moon hanging low in the sky. The bloody light cast a shadow across a confused and wary Kenta; he hadn't even had a chance to process where he might be before he was suddenly strapped to a pure black cross; his arms and legs not bound but still unable to move.

"What the hell—!"

"You have a world of black," Itachi said. "But I have one of red."

Kunai appeared around Kenta from every angle and he stared at them, eyes wide and terrified.

"For the next seventy-two hours you will die a thousand deaths."

"Wait—!"

"Welcome to my world."

The kunai fired and Kenta began to scream.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The lag created by coming out of the tsukuyomi was excruciating and Itachi stumbled to his knees in the dark. His heart beat had doubled due to the strain of using so much chakra at once. He could almost feel his chakra coils pulsing from the abuse. Itachi tried several ways of dissipating the darkness on his own but none of them worked.

He looked to Kenta, who had also fallen to his knees, and wondered if the other boy's jutsu would disperse on its own or if it had to be canceled by the user. Stumbling to his feet, Itachi trudged over to where Kenta sat kneeling. If the scrolls were to be believed, Kenta would be helpless for some time which would rule out a manual canceling.

A sudden pulse filled the dark void, originating from Kenta's prone form. The red tint of the black world faded in and out but Itachi knew it wasn't because the darkness was fading: it was growing even stronger. The darkness crushed down on Itachi and his breathing became labored and harsh as he struggled to breathe past the heavy weight the blackness had called forth. What sort of jutsu was this that it grew stronger as its caster grew weaker?

Fear began to take over Itachi's mind as the air around him seemed to disappear. The vision given to him by his mangekyo sharingan had almost completely vanished and in a rush of panic he struck out with one last burst of chakra. Pain exploded behind his eyes and he cried out as warm liquid welled up against the lower lids.

Blood. His eyes were bleeding!

Almost as soon as it began, the pain ended and the drying tracks of blood were all the evidence that remained behind. He wondered what it was that had caused his eyes to bleed before he realized that the oppressiveness of the darkness was growing lighter bit by bit. A crack reached his ears and suddenly light broke through from somewhere above him.

His chakra almost completely depleted, Itachi let both forms of his sharingan drop as more and more light spread through the darkness. It was then that he noticed a ring of black fire had formed around him and Kenta and was quickly burning up the darkness. Recognition shot down Itachi's spine like a charge and he quickly hauled Kenta up onto his shoulders.

Itachi had no idea how he'd cast the amaterasu, but he had read enough about it to know that staying would be dangerous for both Uchiha boys. After all, if he didn't know how he'd called it, he had no way of sending it back.

Unfortunately, trapped inside of the every growing ring, Itachi had no way to escape either.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Hikari watched the writhing black miasma with anxious terror. She wanted to know what was happening but at the same time she was afraid. If it was able to absorb even her light then Itachi's fires would have no affect on it at all.

Several long minutes passed in tense silence until the miasma finally began to break up. Bits of sunlight filtered through the thinning mists and Hikari was able to make out Itachi standing off to the left with Kenta draped across his shoulders. Relief flooded her body before concern once again took over. Fire surrounded the two boys, but it was a deep black fire that seemed to burn everything and nothing at once.

Curiosity poked at her mind for only a minute before she roughly shoved it aside. Itachi was obviously in trouble and no one was moving to help him at all!

"Call it Yamanaka!" someone yelled and it took Hikari a second to realize it had been her.

"Uh…" Toushi had evacuated the ring when Kenta's jutsu first emerged and had watched, captivated as everyone else, as the blackness filled the ring. "Winner by knock-out is…Itachi?"

It was more of a question then anything but for Hikari it was enough.

"The fights over!" She shouted at the gathered ANBU. "Now do something!"

Several jutsus were used at once: water, earth, and even wind but nothing did any good. In fact, it almost seemed as though they attacks were making the fire spread faster.

Panic set in as she watched the black flames close in on Itachi more and more. An almost tunnel vision effect set in as she stared and her breathing became shallow and panicked. Someone had to save him but no one seemed able too. Someone, something. Anything.

Her body seemed to move on its own as Hikari reached out with her chakra and stole light strait from the sun. Throwing her hands forward she redirected it at the ring below and she shielded her eyes with the rest of the spectators as the light doubled then tripled again in brightness. When she finally was able to look back, the flames were gone and Itachi was unconscious.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

The rest of the exam matches were ridiculously boring in comparison to the one between Itachi and Kenta, despite the fact that no one actually saw how it ended. The tournament winner ended up being some no-name ninja that had no business winning and wouldn't have made it past the second round had the two most powerful contenders not been knocked out early.

Yuuki had come in second place due to an injury she'd sustained in her second match but she wasn't upset considering she still passed the exam while the winner was forced to try again next time. Apparently the judges weren't very impressed by his methods of running away and sneaking attacks.

Three other participants had also passed the exam, one was a young woman from the mist while the other two were both members of Konoha: Itachi and Kenta. The possibility of their promotion had been debated back and forth for the entire day before both were eventually approved. Apparently their seen abilities alone were enough to impress the judges.

At current both boys were in the hospital. Itachi was being treated for hypercoagulability, poisoning, and chakra exhaustion while no one was completely sure what Kenta was suffering from. Physically he was fine but his mind was in shatters. Itachi had been questioned continually but he said nothing out of the ordinary.

Apparently his sharingan was enough to see through the darkness and Itachi used several fire attacks as a distraction before rendering his cousin unconscious. The origins of the black flames were still a mystery but there was a theory that the Katon jutsus Itachi had used had somehow combined with Kenta's attack. It was currently being looked into by several of the village's best technique inventors.

Fortunately for Hikari, her contribution at the examination had gone unnoticed and the origin of the smothering light was still unknown. And it would remain unknown as long as Hikari had anything to say about it.

"I want to see my brother!"

Hikari looked up in surprise from her place in the waiting room to see a boy—a mini Itachi?—harassing the on-duty receptionist. She looked half-flustered, half-annoyed and a quarter-nervous, which added up to more then one hundred percent but Hikari didn't really care. Instead of dwelling on her own problems, she decided to be a good citizen and help out. Standing slowly, Hikari brushed off her skirt before making her way over to the reception desk.

"Hey kid," Hikari said. "You alright?"

The boy turned and Hikari was once again struck by his similarity to Itachi. If she didn't know better she'd almost think she was seven again. As it was she had to forcefully stop herself from looking around for Yotaro like he was about to walk through the door.

"No!" The boy said, he looked near tears. "They won't let me see my brother! They said I have to go with a grown up!"

"Well what about your parents? Won't they go with you?"

The boy looked down at the floor and Hikari 'ah'ed.

"So they don't know where you are, huh?"

He nodded miserably.

"I'll go with him," she said to the receptionist and the boy looked up in childish hope. "I was planning to see Itachi as well."

The boy looked surprised. "How'd you know my nii-chan's name?"

Hikari smirked. "I'm a shinobi, kid. I know a lot of things normal people don't."

He looked close to reverent as he watched her and Hikari bit back a snort as she leaned over to sign them both in.

"Sasuke-kun, right?" Hikari said and Sasuke just nodded looking, if possible, even more impressed.

"Room 231," the woman said looking down at Sasuke rather disdainfully. Rather then caring, Sasuke just grabbed Hikari's hand and hurried down the hall but not before looking back to stick his tongue out at the rather sour looking woman.

"She's really mean," Sasuke whispered to Hikari in confidence. "She said I'm ob-nauseous."

"That is rather mean," Hikari said, completely serious. "We should get back at her before we leave."

Sasuke's eyes were wide. "Really?"

"Really."

"Are you gonna do ninja stuff."

Hikari smirked. "Yup. Wanna help?"

"Yeah!"

Sasuke was practically bouncing from foot to foot as they stepped into the elevator. He even beamed up at Hikari in joy when she let him push the button for the second floor. She was rather overwhelmed by Sasuke's exuberant response that she promised he could push the call button _and_ the floor number on the way back down. As they stepped out of the elevator she had to wonder if it was really possible to smile that wide without breaking your jaw.

And seriously, didn't this kid have any joy in his life? At all?

Sasuke slid the door to Itachi's room open with such force that Hikari had to lunge forward to stop it from banging. She lifted an eyebrow at Sasuke, who had the decency to look sheepish, before she rolled her eyes and smiled at him while gently prodding him through the door with her foot. He hurried over to Itachi's bedside and started to say something before he quickly slapped his hands over his mouth and backed away looking rather disappointed.

"He's asleep," Sasuke whispered once he was back at Hikari's side. His lower lip was quivering and he looked about ready to cry.

"Hey, it's okay," Hikari said, kneeling down to Sasuke's level.

"He's always there for me," Sasuke said. "He reads to me and plays with me and teaches me ninja stuff. He's the best nii-chan ever." Sasuke sniffled loudly and rubbed at his eyes with the long sleeve of his shirt. "He'll be okay, right nee-san?"

"Of course he will!" Hikari said without any hesitation. "Your brother's strong, he'll be alright. Besides, I know for a fact that he loves you lots and lots. He'd never leave you alone."

Sasuke grinned. "Yeah."

"Hey, I have a good idea." Hikari stood up and dug her wallet out of her pocket before pulling out a few ryos. "I saw a gift shop back on the first floor that had lots of flowers. Why don't you get him some?"

"You think they have teppouyuri? They're his favorite."

Hikari was surprised. Itachi liked Easter lilies? "I suppose so."

Sasuke grinned again. "I like them too now."

"Is that right?" Hikari said. "How come?"

"Cause," Sasuke said, his voice matter-of-fact. "They're the same color as your hair, nee-chan."

Once again, Hikari was surprise but Sasuke had already skipped out the door before she could respond. Not knowing what else to do, she ventured further into the room and took the chair at Itachi's bedside. His hair was loose about his head and Hikari took a moment to finger it, it was much longer then it had been when they were children.

Actually, now that she thought about it, Itachi had started growing out his hair around the same time he had cut hers off. Some sort of misguided redemption? Well, whatever the reason, she decided she liked it this length. It made him look…ruggedly handsome. Even the lines beneath his eyes did nothing to tarnish the effect. If anything, they enhanced it.

"I always knew you would be the first to get wrinkles," Hikari said, tracing over the lines with a feather-like touch. "You were always so serious and worried about everything. You probably still stress about Yotaro too. No matter what you tell me, I know you think his death was your fault."

Itachi didn't say anything back and Hikari sighed as her fingers traveled up his temple to mesh with his hair once again.

"It wasn't your fault. And it wasn't mine. No matter how much we want to blame ourselves or each other." Tears welled up in Hikari's eyes and she viciously swiped them away with her free hand. Now wasn't the time to get emotional. "I don't hate you, you know. I'm sorry I said that. Actually…to be honest…"

Hikari paused for a second and looked around. She was still alone and Itachi was still asleep. Regardless, butterflies fluttered in her stomach and she was tempted to back out. Sternly she shook her head. She had to tell him. Even if he didn't hear her at least she would have it off her chest.

Leaning in close to Itachi, so that they were nearly cheek to cheek, Hikari spoke and told him her greatest secret.

"I love you," she said. "I always have."

Pulling back just a fraction she pressed the lightest of kisses against the corner of his mouth. She lingered as long as she dared before pulling back and tracing his face once more.

"I love you," she said again before she stood just as she sensed Sasuke returning to the room.

"I got them nee-san," Sasuke said. "They only had two left though."

"That's alright," Hikari said, turning with a smile. "Tomorrow we'll stop by the Yamanaka's and buy him a whole bouquet. How does that sound?"

"Really?" Sasuke said. "You'll bring me back again?"

"Of course. For now though you should probably say good-bye. It's getting late."

"Will you walk me home?"

"Sure, kid." Hikari said. "I'd be honored."

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Itachi waited until he felt both Hikari and Sasuke leave before he opened his eyes. He'd been awake since they appeared outside of his door but he'd pretended he wasn't. He hadn't felt ready to face Hikari yet and for once he didn't want to have to fight with her. He wasn't expecting her to confess to him.

To be honest he felt both awed and ashamed. He was thrilled that she didn't hate him but he also felt guilty in his pleasure. He wasn't supposed to have her love. In fact, he wasn't supposed to have anything to do with her at all. He wanted to wish that he'd never heard what she said but he knew that wasn't possible. It was something he would treasure his whole life, even though he would pretend he never knew.

That was, after all, the only way to prove that he loved her back.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

The sun was nearly set by the time Hikari and Sasuke had made it to the Uchiha section of the Village. They would have been back earlier but Hikari had insisted that they stop for ice cream, something that Sasuke was all too happy to agree to. She wasn't all that surprised by Sasuke's choice of plain vanilla considering it was what Itachi had always gotten at a child. The similarities between her teammate and his little brother were astonishing to say the least but having seen how much the boy idolized his older brother she could understand where most of it came from.

"I like you nee-chan," Sasuke said suddenly and Hikari had to smile.

"I like you too, Sasuke-kun." She said and Sasuke smiled back at her before he turned back to his icecream.

They had only walked a few more steps before Sasuke stopped with a slightly puzzled look on his face. Hikari paused in concern.

"Sasuke-kun?"

"Hey, um…nee-chan?"

Hikari knelt next to him. "Yeah?"

"What's your name?"

Hikari practically fell over. She couldn't believe she'd actually forgotten to give the kid her name!

"I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun," she said. "I guess I wasn't thinking. My name is Haruno Hikari, but you can just call me Hikari."

"Hikari-nee-chan?"

She nodded. "That works too."

Sasuke grinned. "I really, really like you Hikari-nee-chan."

"Thanks Sasuke-kun," Hikari said, laughing a little. "I really, really like you too."

The Uchiha compound had just come into sight when Sasuke heaved a heavy sigh. "I wish my nii-chan would marry you Hikari-nee-chan."

Hikari choked on her icecream. "Wh-what? Why say that all of a sudden?"

"Well, Arai-san is nice and all but her brother is really mean. I don't like him." Sasuke turned to Hikari with a serious look. "But I like you nee-chan. Do you have a nice brother too?"

"I-I don't have any brothers," Hikari said, confused. "I did have an older cousin but he died two years ago."

"Oh." Sasuke was wide eyed with surprise. "How'd it happen?"

Hikari shrugged. "He went on a mission with some other shinobi to find some bad people that used to belong to our village. No one really knows what happened because the only shinobi that came back won't talk about it. Just that Kyo saved his life."

"What shinobi is that?"

Hikari paused for a moment before she sighed. "Your father."

"Really?" Sasuke said. "Your cousin saved my dad's life?"

"So he said." Hikari looked thoughtful. "He stopped by my house just after he returned from the mission. He said it was unsuccessful because of outside interference but he can't tell us who or what because it's classified. Anyway, he came to pay his respects to the family. That was when we learned that Kairi-nee-san was pregnant."

"You have a big sister?"

"No, she's my cousin's ex-teammate and lover. They were going to get married but…well, anyway, they didn't. I do have a younger sister though. Her name is Sakura." She glanced down at him with a wary smile. "If you see her at the academy next year, be nice to her okay?"

Sasuke nodded. "If she's your sister I'll definitely protect her."

Hikari smiled but this time it was sad. "You sound a lot like your brother."

"Do you really love him nee-chan?"

She started. "What? How did you—I mean…"

"I heard you outside the door. Nii-chan's been teaching me how to hide my chakra signature."

"I-I see."

"So do you nee-chan?"

"I…Sasuke-kun, you have to understand that it's really complicated and—yes, I do love him."

"So will you marry him?"

Hikari blushed. "Maybe someday."

"Well you better hurry, nee-chan, cause nii-chan said he's gonna marry Arai-san." Sasuke nodded firmly. "I like her but I like you better so will you marry him first?"

But Hikari wasn't listening anymore. All she could hear over and over was that Itachi was going to marry Arai. And she never even told her.

End Chapter Four

* * *

Kaliea: Sorry it's been so long, my family went on vacation 'cause my dad is on leave from Iraq for two weeks. Speaking of which, I'm going to go spend time with my family. Leave me a review. Ciao.


	5. Grand Opening

**Building a Bridge**

* * *

Chapter Five: Grand Opening

Hikari didn't sleep at all that night. Instead she just lied on her bed and watched as the stars faded in and out with the movements of the clouds. She didn't understand why Arai hadn't told her anything about the engagement. It wasn't like she'd never had the chance. And weren't best friends supposed to talk about stuff like that? Especially if it happened with the other friend's love interest!

Looking over the past month since the beginning of the exams Hikari began to realize all of the small signals that Arai gave off. A strained smile here or a poor excuse to leave there. And those rare, but lingering, looks that passed between Arai and Itachi if the two girls happened to pass him on the street.

Hikari buried her face into her pillow in frustration. She wanted to scream! Thinking back it all seemed so obvious! She felt like such an idiot.

Heat flooded her cheeks as she wondered just how often Arai and Itachi sat around and laughed over her ignorance. So much for the bonds of friends and teammates!

And didn't Arai like Ko? Was that a lie too? Was anything Arai said ever the truth? Or was it all a lie made up to get close to her for some sick plot?

Actually, she wouldn't put something like this past Itachi. He always seemed so willingly out for revenge on her.

The night ticked away with more and more thoughts along these lines until it was completely spent and the sun had begun to peak over the horizon. Even still, Hikari stayed in bed for several more hours, just glaring absently at the wall, until her father called for her to wake up because the bath was ready.

She ended up passing on the bath, she'd had one the day before anyway, and instead dressed rather haphazardly; not caring what she wore so long as it was all in the right place. Her lime green skirt clashed horribly with the long sleeved, mustard yellow top and the fishnet she'd dug out to wear was old and torn in several places. Passing the mirror she absently wondered how pieces that looked so good with other outfits could be so awful together. She definitely knew Arai would cringe at the fashion nightmare it created, but if anything that only made Hikari more determined to wear it.

She padded through the halls with only her fishnet stalkings on her feet and shook aside the oversized cuff of her sleeve so she could run her fingers through her long pillow-mussed hair. Somehow she managed to grab a rice ball and a cup of tea (that she already knew she'd forget to bring back) and escaped out of the house in all of her color-blind glory without being seen.

She trekked through the crowd of early risers and tried her best not to care when they stopped and stared at her, though it was hard not to when one woman actually dropped her basked of tomatoes. And, honestly, they were the really good ones too; if a person was going to go around dropping vegetables then they really aught to put the awful ones in their basket.

Hikari soon made it through the market and was on a strait shot to the academy when she remembered she still needed to pick Tenten up from Kairi's house. Sighing in annoyance, not that she found Tenten-chan annoying in the least, she adjusted her angle and made her was to the familiar home. It only took a few minutes after the bell was rung for the sounds of banging feet appeared in the entry hall and Hikari took a few steps back to avoid being trampled when the door swung open.

"Hikari-nee—!" Tenten's cry died out in shock as she stared at the older girl. "N-nee-chan? What…are you wearing?"

"Clothes," Hikari said shortly. "Are you ready?"

"I…um, I was eating breakfast."

"Is that Hikari-chan?" Kairi called from another room. "Come on in dear, Tenten was just finishing up."

Against her better judgment, Hikari slid off her sandals and stepped up into the house. Kairi was understandably shocked when she stepped into the kitchen but Hikari could honestly say she hadn't expected Akira to suddenly start crying.

"It's not that bad." Hikari said before Kairi burst out laughing. Hikari was shocked. That was definitely not what she had expected.

"You look so silly, Hikari-chan!" Kairi managed through her giggles. "Usually when a child is feeling gloomy they opt for black."

Hikari shrugged. "I don't own black. I'm not a go board."

Eventually Kairi calmed as she asked Tenten to take over feeding Akira. The girl happily obliged as she announced that she was already becoming an expert at the task. With that taken care of, Kairi motioned for Hikari to follow her down the hall to her room.

"So what's wrong Hikari-chan?" Kairi said as she slid the door gently closed. "This really isn't like you."

"Itachi's engaged."

Kairi froze in shock. "Oh," she finally said. "I see."

Hikari said nothing.

"To whom?"

"Arai."

"…Oh. I see."

"How could she do this to me nee-chan?" Hikari said, tears of frustration gathering in her eyes. "She's my best friend! And she definitely knows how I feel, so why?!"

Kairi was silent for a long moment. "Sometimes people do things with an outcome in mind that we can't see. Sometimes because we're to close to the situation and other times because we're not close enough."

"Nothing justifies what she did," Hikari said bitingly. "And even if she does have a good reason, which I doubt, she had plenty of time to tell me the truth."

"Didn't she?"

"No. I found out from Sasuke-kun, Itachi's little brother."

"Are you sure Sasuke-san wasn't merely mistaken? At his age it isn't impossible that he simply misinterpreted something he had only partially heard."

"He's not that kind of kid." Hikari said. "He's scary smart. Almost like Itachi was himself. Give him a few years and he'll be an exact copy."

"Hikari," Kairi said, completely serious now. "I understand you're bitter but you have to promise me you won't jump to conclusions. Even if Sasuke-san is as smart as you say you need to get Arai-chan's side first. The last thing you need is to destroy your friendship over a boy."

Hikari was silent for a moment before she nodded. "I'll listen first." 'And then kick her ass.' She wisely decided not to add the last part.

"Good. Now, let's see what we can do about those…clothes."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was fifteen minutes later that a decidedly less offensive looking Hikari emerged from Kairi's house. She and Tenten were going to be late for their first class but she could admit that the outcome of her should-have-been-cousin's abrupt makeover was well worth it. Her naturally wavy hair was ironed strait and fell clear to the small of her back in one smooth sheet with her bangs falling in a strait line across her forehead.

Rather then her usual peppy colors, Kairi had acquiesced to Hikari's fairly dark mood and had given her a pair of just-above-the-knee length black shorts and a deep green sleeveless crop top that showed off her well defined stomach. A set of black arm-warmers and sandals with black shin guards completed the look which gave off only one vibe: the girl was dressed to kill.

Whether any actual death would take place was still yet to be determined.

When Hikari had asked where (and why) Kairi had gotten such…interesting clothes, the older girl had simply blushed and given her a secret smile. She still wasn't entirely sure she wanted to know what that particular look meant.

The commotion caused at the academy started long before Hikari had even arrived when one of the boys in her class, Morino Idate, had seen her when she entered Kairi's house. With the mutual bad-blood between the two he had no qualms about spreading the rumors of her awful look. He was more then disappointed (and even a bit embarrassed) when, instead of a rumpled color-blind rat, a sexy (as a kid can get at least) composed ninja-babe entered their classroom.

Which instantly irrupted.

Questions, wolf-whistles, and shouts for quiet by Iruka followed Hikari to her seat where Arai offered her own stunned whistle.

"What the heck happened to you?"

Hikari sent the girl the coldest glare she could muster and Arai drew back in shock.

"Emo much?" She muttered but Hikari pretended not to hear.

When the class let out for P.F.T. most of the students stayed behind and congregated around Hikari's desk with questions. Hikari did her best to protrude an attitude of cool self-confidence though inside she was rather surprised. She'd never really stood out in class and didn't have too many friends so she wasn't sure how exactly to deal with her new found popularity.

"So, Hikari-chan," said a boy she didn't exactly recognize. "Is this a permanent change?"

"I don't know," Hikari said. "That depends."

"On what?" The boy (Takahashi maybe?) asked but Hikari said nothing.

Rather annoyed at this point, Arai slammed her hands flat on the desk to get everyone's attention. Her dark eyes were narrowed with anger and her flawless brow was wrinkled in distaste.

"That's enough you vultures," she said. "Leave her alone, you hear me? Get!"

Even the boldest members of the class knew not to mess with Arai-chan when she was angry and soon the crowd was successfully dispersed. Once that was taken care of, Arai dropped back into her seat to glare at Hikari who was pretending to be rather fascinated by her stubby nails.

"Well?" Arai said and finally Hikari looked away from her hand long enough to gaze at the other girl.

"Well what?"

"You mind telling me why you suddenly decided it would be a good idea to come to school looking like a junior hooker with the attitude of an emo-chick wannabe?"

"What's the matter, Arai," Hikari said, her voice low and calm. "Can't handle a little competition?"

Arai was nearly beside herself. "See? Like that! Just what the hell is the matter with you?"

"What's the matter with me?" Hikari exploded. "What's the matter with you!"

"What?" Arai said. "Hikari, what are you talking about?"

"You and Itachi! I know about the engagement already so don't you dare lie!"

Arai drew in a sharp breath. "Who told you about that?"

Hikari looked like she'd just been slapped. "…So it's true? You really are engaged to him?"

"…Yes, it's true. But it's not what you think, I swear!"

"Oh, so you're not stabbing me in the back with the guy I've loved since I was six." Hikari's voice was bitingly sarcastic. "That's good. I guess I can sleep easy tonight, huh?"

"It's complicated."

Hikari's jaw clenched in anger. "I'm not really surprised. Everything is 'complicated' with your screwed up family."

This time it was Arai who tensed. "Knock it off Hikari, I'm serous. Just because you're upset doesn't mean you can take it out on me."

"You're the one I'm mad at!"

"And believe me, if it was what you thought I'd gladly let you hate me, but it's not."

"Well what _is_ it then?"

Arai shook her said almost sadly. "I can't tell you."

Complete silence.

Then: "What do you mean 'you can't tell me'?"

"It's an Uchiha matter," Arai said. "You wouldn't understand. Just trust me when I say it's for your best interest alright?"

Hikari was almost beside herself. "My best interest? My 'best friend' is getting married to the guy I love and it's for _my best interest_? How could that possibly be for my best interest!"

"Please Hikari, when the time comes I'll be able to explain everything but for now just accept it—."

"The hell I will!" Hikari said, jumping to your feet. "Some best friend you are! And if that's how you're going to play it then fine! Two can play at **that** game…"

Before Arai could ask, Hikari was already striding down the stairs and out the door. She scrambled to follow the shorter girl and just barely made it to the hall in time to see Hikari's long white hair disappear around a corner. Arai's brow furrowed just a bit. Why was she heading for the P.F.T. field? Break was almost over…

Rather then waste time speculating, Arai hurried after her friend and followed her outside to where the students had already started to come in. She stopped at the top of the stairs with folded arms and just watched as Hikari marched into the gathering of students, walked up to Hyuuga Ko, tapped his shoulder, and then brought the startled boy down to give him a sudden kiss.

A scream of rage separated Hikari from Ko before the boy had fully realized what was happening and she easily weaved through the crowd to an open section of the P.F.T field. Arai attacked her almost blindly and she easily dodged each blow, occasionally deflecting a weapon here or there.

"How could you!" Arai shrieked when she somehow managed to grab a fistful of Hikari's hair. "How could you do that to me?"

"Like you're one to talk!" Hikari said back, scratching at Arai's bare arms. "You started this you bitch!"

And suddenly what started out as a battle between ninja collapsed into a frenzied cat-fight between two former best friends turned bitter enemies. The other students, who had been cheering the girls on in the beginning, stood dumbstruck as Hikari slapped Arai across the face before she got her hand caught tightly between Arai's teeth. Finally someone had the sense of mind to run for a teacher but by then Hyuuga Ko was already gone in search of someone else.

Uchiha Itachi was probably the only person who could stop them now.

As luck would have it, Itachi was near by and Ko wasted no time in running up to the prodigy. In his panic he barely managed to stutter out something about Hikari, a kiss, Arai, and a fight but it seemed enough to persuade the other boy to follow. By the time they arrived at the P.F.T. field the fight had somehow switched back from a cat-fight to an all-holds-barred shinobi duel. And for the moment it seemed Hikari was actually winning.

Almost simultaneously Arai and Hikari pulled back for roundhouse kicks that Itachi knew would collide together at their shins, the same area Hikari's leg had broken before.

"Hikari! Stop!" But he was too late and the limbs connected with a resounding crack. For a moment nothing happened and the girls just stood there staring at one another. After several long seconds the pain of a second break filtered into Hikari's mind and she crumpled to the ground with a pained scream.

"What's going on?" Iruka demanded from the academy's door way but everyone was too fixated on Hikari to answer him. The crowd had packed in tighter around the two and Arai tried to keep them back and tend to Hikari at the same time. Her saving grace came in the form of a loud, authoritative bark.

"Move!" Itachi said and the crowd parted like the Red Sea for Moses. He stepped into the barren circle that the students had left and dropped to Hikari's side as she writhed on the grass. Carefully he placed one hand on her forehead while the other went to gently pry her hands from her leg.

"Let go, Hikari," he said, his voice soft. "I'm here now. I'll help you."

"I-t-tachi…" Hikari forced out, her bright green eyes bright with tears. Pain clenched at Itachi's heart but he somehow managed a small smile before he turned to Iruka.

"Take them inside." He said. "I'll get Hikari to the hospital."

"I should do that Itachi-san—." Iruka started but Itachi cut him off with a glare.

"No," he said. "I'll take her."

With that said, he carefully pulled the crying girl into his arms princess-style and made his way swiftly towards the hospital. Several of the girls in the class sighed in his wake while Arai just sat in the same place she had been tending to her best friend. Or was it ex-best friend now? The thought was too much for her and Arai burst into tears and sobs. Iruka was swiftly jerked from his observation of Itachi and Hikari to tend to his other student. Gently he shushed her before he ordered the rest of the students inside the classroom.

"I want each of you to copy shinobi law #39 two hundred times before you leave," he ordered and the students groaned. Once they were gone he carefully drew Arai to her feet and guided her towards the academy lounge. "Come on Arai-san. I'll get you some tea."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hikari was rushed directly into surgery while the nurse on duty informed Itachi that if he was going to stay it would have to be in the main lobby. He agreed in his usual, stoic manner and sat in one of the hard plastic chairs to count down the minutes and then hours before someone came in with news. The woman that entered didn't look that much older then him, maybe fifteen or sixteen, but that wasn't entirely unusual; most interns started at fourteen or younger.

"Are you Uchiha Itachi-kun?" The girl asked and he nodded as he stood. "My name is Higurashi Sara, I'll be Haruno-san's on-call nurse."

Like he seriously cared.

"How is she?"

"Hm…" Sara flipped through her charts and it took all of Itachi's control not to snap at the girl to go faster. "It appears her surgery was a success, as far as we can tell in these early stages. The splintered bone was removed and the leg was reset and is actually in better alignment then before. According to Takarada-sensei she should make a full recovery. Since this surgery included a chakra infusion to strengthen the break there shouldn't be any future problems."

Rather then be assured, Itachi was even more upset by the news. "If that was possible then why didn't you do that the first time?" He demanded. "Why wait until she damaged it worse."

"Due to her age at the time, the location and nature of the break, as well as the means and procedures available, Haruno-san had received the best possible treatment available at the time. You may not know this, but the field of chakra related medicine is not very advanced. New treatments are discovered every year. Chakra infusion happened to be one procedure not available at the time of Haruno-san's first incident. And as she was healing rather well it seemed ridiculous to break it again."

Rather then contend with the nurse, despite his irritation at the hospital staff's incompetence, Itachi shifted the conversation to his ability to visit his former teammate.

"Well, she's sleeping under medication at the moment. The anesthesia given to her for the surgery hasn't worn off yet."

"All the better," Itachi said. "Take me to her."

Sara looked like she wanted to argue but a glance at her watch told Itachi that she probably didn't have the time. Instead she just sighed and motioned for him to follow as she headed down the hall to the stairs. He went up two floors and down a side hall before he was in front of Hikari's recovery room. He was about to slide open the door when Sara stopped him.

"Fifteen minutes at most Uchiha-kun," Sara said. "And then you'll have to leave."

Itachi neither agreed nor dismissed the nurse's warning as he entered the room in silence. Before she could demand an answer he had already closed the door and, rather then follow him in, she stomped off in a huff. Content that he was alone with the girl, Itachi ventured over to her bedside where he couldn't help but notice her skin nearly disappeared against the stark white sheets. Pulling up a chair beside her he sat down, his brow wrinkling.

"You're annoying," he said. "No matter where you are."

She didn't respond as he'd already known she wouldn't but he couldn't help feeling slightly disappointed. In an effort to distract himself he reached out and ran a finger along a loose strand of her hair, remembering how she had threaded her hand through his not that long before.

"Are you still mad?" He said, more to himself then to her. "Probably. You always held onto your grudges. Was that why you fought with Arai? Over some perceived wrong?" He shook his head. "You're such a child. You shouldn't be a ninja."

Hikari shifted in her drugged sleep and Itachi froze. He waited for almost five minutes before he was certain she wouldn't wake up before his hand started stroking her hair again.

"I heard you that time. After the exam. You're a fool to love me. You should forget about me." He paused, not wanting to continue. "I'm engaged to Arai. You may hate me for it but it's for your own good. Someday you'll understand."

A quick glance at the clock told him his time was up so he stood. Standing over her pale, vulnerable form Itachi felt his heart clench. He only wished he'd been in time to save her from such pain. Before he could talk himself out of it, he leaned over and placed a soft, chaste kiss against the corner of her lips before pulling away just slightly.

"I do love you." He said, his voice less then a whisper, before he turned and left. The door slid shut behind him and though it wasn't a loud sound it seemed to still echo in the empty hall. The feel of her lips on his still tingled and he scolded himself for such a foolish action.

"You really are annoying." He said at long last before he followed the hall and left the hospital without even a backward glance.

Back in her room Hikari's sleep turned fitful. In her dreams her world crumbled as Itachi's cold eyes glared deep into her own. 'You're annoying' he told her before he took Arai's hand, a bold move for one such as Itachi, and the two disappeared into the darkness. 'You're annoying' his voice echoed again and again and in her sleep tears began to stain her pale cheeks.

"You really are annoying."

'…I know…'

End Grand Opening

* * *

Kaliea: Well that's it for this story. Not the best ending I know but like I said, it's a filler story. Keep a look out for Shades of Gray but I don't expect it to be making an entrance anytime very soon. Don't forget to review and until next time, ja ne!


	6. Sequel Alert

The sequel "Shades of Gray" is now available. Be sure to check it out!

~Kaliea


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